Egypt: Singer Laila Amer sentenced to two-year imprisonment for belly-dancing
An Egyptian court sentenced a little-known female singer Laila Amer to two years in prison over an online video it says "incites debauchery and immorality." The decision against Amer by Giza Misdemeanor Court came on the same day that another court sentenced a famous Arab singer to six months' imprisonment over comments that were interpreted as an insult to the Nile River. Here's more.
What exactly was Laila Amer's crime?
Amer's video called "Bos Omak" showed her belly dancing and playing a downtrodden housewife complaining to her husband about his bossy mother. The court issued lesser sentences of three and six months to members of the team that produced the video Bos Omak, a pun on a popular Arabic profanity. Unlike her famous contemporary Abdel-Wahab, she awaits her yet-to-be-decided appeal date in prison.
